I neglected to recognize another family who has suffered a recent loss. My friend and neighbor Dawn and her family are saying goodbye to her father tomorrow (Saturday). This comes almost 2 years to the day of saying goodbye to her mother.
Although I’m not able to attend the service my thoughts and prayers are with you and the rest of the family.
Dawn and Lisa ~ many thanks to the both of you for sharing in my transportation needs this past week!
PT (physical therapy) has been wonderful… I’m now up to exercising 1 hour every Tuesday and Thursday. Now I just need to get the same equipment they have at rehab so that I can continue my workout throughout the week. I believe that I’ve come across a table top version that will allow for the same type of exercise at home… the best part is that it is under $30.00.
Once my lung capacity and strength have increased a bit more then they will order some resistance bands and weights for me to have at home. Hopefully, in a couple of weeks I will be ready to start walking the neighborhood… let me know if you want to take me for a walk.
I had an appointment with my pulmonologist today and he gave me some very good news!
I’m not depressed…
Apparently I’m just sick again with another lung infection! Wow, talk about being ignorant! There is so much for me to learn about this COPD thing. I guess this stuff is a little more serious then I thought. It’s hard for me to get a grip on the fact that one little cough most likely means that I have a new infection.
As I mentioned in the last update, I had been getting up a couple times each night for breathing treatments because I was coughing. I was also finding myself extremely tired and I thought depressed.
If nothing else this rotten disease is certainly playing mind games on me. Being sick again was the last thing on my mind. Even today as I was sitting with Lisa I told her that I am going to make an appointment so that I could start dealing with this depression that I was in. What a shock to find out the only problem is being sick.
While in the office today the doctor informed me that the next time I start coughing I need to call his office right away. He reminded me that there is always a doctor on call 24/7 and if I don’t receive a return call within 10 minutes to call again.
Before 2002 I only went to the doctor if I didn’t feel good… I figured that if I became too sick or if I noticed a change in my body then I would seek the advice of a physician. Going from that to seeing doctors several times a month, and now… needing to call every time I cough… that’s a bit much. Anyway, if you are around me and I cough I guess you should ask me if I’ve called the doctor.
I was given a shot of steroids while in the office, a couple new medications and another week of steroids 40mg / daily and then another week to taper off. After I had returned home the doctor’s office phoned saying that they were calling in yet one more prescription, antibiotics.
Let’s talk about steroids for a moment shall we!
If you have ever had to take those nasty tasting little Prednisone pills then please let me know how you get them down your throat. As for now I take little tiny pieces of bread and wrap each one individually until it’s completely covered… it’s only then that I can swallow them one at a time.
How can these little pills make one feel? As Lisa and I were sitting in the office we starting talking about how steroids can cause one to become agitated. I had never heard of such a thing… then I started to think.
Do you remember back to one of my recent updates where I stated that Stephen and Jeralynn had seen the good, the bad, and the ugly? It was the steroids! You all need to keep this in the back of your mind… if I say something you don’t like then blame it on the steroids!
Okay, in all serious this has been very interesting to learn. It explains to me why so many of you have irritated me without your even knowing it. I mean that with all the love I have… but please, go ahead and continue to irritate me… deep down inside you all mean the world to me! At least now I can know how to react… and if I happen to blurt out “it’s the steroids” you will know why!
Love to you all,
Diana
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